Death by Chocolate Cake
Serves 1
Directions
- 1To make the chocolate simple syrup, combine half a cup of water and half a cup of granulated sugar in a saucepan and heat until the sugar is fully dissolved.
- 2Mix in one tablespoon of dark cocoa powder into the simple syrup.
- 3Pour the chocolate simple syrup into a jar and let it cool.
- 4Whisk together all the dry ingredients: two cups of all-purpose flour, two cups of granulated sugar, three-quarters of a cup of dark cocoa powder, two teaspoons of baking powder, one and a half teaspoons of baking soda, and one teaspoon of fine salt.
- 5Combine the wet ingredients: one cup of warm water, one cup of sour cream, half a cup of vegetable oil, two large eggs, two teaspoons of vanilla extract, and one teaspoon of instant espresso.
- 6Whisk the wet ingredients until thoroughly combined.
- 7Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
- 8Whisk the mixture together until smooth to create the cake batter.
- 9Line and grease your cake pans.
- 10Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pans; this recipe yields three 8-inch cake layers or two 9-inch cake layers.
- 11Bake the cake layers at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 22 to 26 minutes.
- 12For the chocolate frosting, mix together two cups of unsalted butter, one cup of dark baking cocoa, one teaspoon of vanilla extract, and half a teaspoon of salt.
- 13Mix in five cups of powdered sugar and three-quarters of a cup of heavy cream on a low speed.
- 14Mix in one and a third cups of melted and cooled dark chocolate.
- 15Brush the cake layers with the cooled chocolate simple syrup.
- 16Spread an even layer of the chocolate frosting onto the first cake layer.
- 17Place the next cake layer on top and repeat the brushing with syrup and spreading of frosting.
- 18Add a final thick layer of chocolate buttercream to the top and sides of the cake, omitting a crumb coat for simplicity.
- 19Decorate the cake with extra cake crumbs if desired; this step is optional.
- 20Slice and serve the cake.
Ingredients
- 0.5 cup water
- 0.5 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon dark cocoa powder
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 0.75 cup dark cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1.5 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 cup warm water
- 1 cup sour cream
- 0.5 cup vegetable oil
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon instant espresso
- 2 cups unsalted butter
- 1 cup dark baking cocoa
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 5 cups powdered sugar
- 0.75 cup heavy cream
- 1.33 cups dark chocolate
Equipment
saucepanwhiskmixing bowlshand mixer8-inch cake pansovenbasting brushoffset spatulaserving platterknife
Tips
- Melt the dark chocolate for the frosting at the beginning to allow it to cool down and not melt the butter.
- To keep the cake simple, omit the crumb coat and apply one thick layer of chocolate buttercream.
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